Friday, April 28, 2006

A Novel Senator?


Without getting too political here, let me point out that in Virginia we have the opportunity to elect a novelist to the Senate. Even though the novels are militaristic pulp, it still seems like a good thing. James Webb was in Staunton yesterday to kick off his Senate campaign. I missed it, but I expect to meet him in a few weeks when the 6th District Democratic Committee hosts a forum where both Webb and his Democratic Party Primary opponent Harris Miller are expected to appear. Webb has better name recognition, but a lot of Democrats may not be able to vote in the primary for an outspoken fan of Ronald Reagan.

Anyway, the point is that Webb, in addition to having been a Marine and Secretary of the Navy, has published several books, including the military novels. I know I read one years ago, but I apparently didn’t hang on to it. Which, given how I almost never let books go, says a lot about what I thought of it. Still, I like the idea of a literate, if not quite literary, politician.

2 comments:

Alice said...

I hope you will give Harris Miller a second look, I like him. Seeing them side by side really gives you the best idea as to who would hold up in a campaign.

Unknown said...

I haven't decided which one I'll vote for in the primary, but the question I'll be asking (apart from who writes a better a novel) is who has a better chance--given our nutty, conservative electorate--of sidelining George Allen in November.